Cannonball trumpets...

Bryant Jordan · Posted: Mon Aug 08, 2016 8:54 pm Post subject: Cannonball trumpets...

Hi everyone.

I play a Cannonball 789 RL, and I thought I'd share some of my thoughts about the horn.

It's definitely not the most popular manufacturer outside of Utah, but living here, I've heard a ton of awesome stories about their trumpets. I was in the market for a new horn, so I thought I'd check them out. So I went down to the local music store (retailer of their instruments) and tried out the 789 RL (silver) right alongside a bunch of other horns (Strad, Artisan Strad, Xeno) and a few other Cannonball models. The Artisan was wonderful, which was why I was surprised I liked the 789 more! Its reverse leadpipe gave it a wonderful free-blowing feel, and the tone!! It has a 5.25 inch bell, which when played normal sounds nice and pure, and when pushed, it "roars"! A nickname the designers gave it was the "Bavarian Lion", and it was obvious why! I was more than pleased with it, but there were multiple finishes they provided the horn in, one of them being a matte black nickel plate. I told the guy helping me about my interest in it, and they said they could ship one in for me to try.

They told me that particular model would have a slightly darker sound, and me being one who likes darker horns, was ecstatic. When I went in to try the horn after it arrived, I was stunned by how beautiful the finish was. Absolutely gorgeous. But the cool thing is, it played even better! It took my musical expression to a place in my dreams. I had so much control over all registers (all even and open). I couldn't get the smile off my face (except when playing, not sure smilings the most efficient embochure

)

And so that's how I ended up with this horn. No regrets at all. Hope this review can help in any way. Oh, and if you have an experience with Cannonball horns, please do post! Thank

brassmusician · Veteran Member Joined: 25 Feb 2016 Posts: 273

I have played the 789RL, in silver plate, for the last 8 years. It is a free blowing/open horn. I struggled with this (it affected my endurance) till I moved to mouthpieces that provided more resistance. It has great intonation and fairly solid slotting. Build quality is excellent - parts manufactured by B&S in Germany then hand assembled in Utah. The horn is very responsive and I think this comes from having brace placement etc tweaked during assembly. Last year I went to some music shops and play tested around 20 pro horns from the main manufacturers and only felt that the Schilkes were better - the rest were simply different. The horn comes with a set of heavy valve bottom caps and for me it plays better with the light ones - I think the horn was setup to play with them.

I feel the openness of the horn has constrained my mouthpiece choices somewhat and sometimes wonder if I might be better on a "smaller" horn with a larger mouthpiece. Difficult to tell since my dedication to practice of fundamentals is somewhat variable and that is such a big factor.

Bryant Jordan · Posted: Mon Aug 08, 2016 9:48 pm Post subject:

Thanks for the thoughts, brassmusician. I too find the lighter valve caps work better on the horn.

NYC-player · Heavyweight Member Joined: 03 Jun 2016 Posts: 627

I've played Winston Byrd's Cannonball...not sure of the model. But man it is a beast of a horn. Solid, rich sound, great intonation and holds together a great core.

And man Winston sounds good on his!

Glad you're liking your new horn and cool story.

All the best

LaTrompeta · Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 6:25 am Post subject:

I have played the new 42 series, and I know the man who designed the horns in conjunction with Cannonball. I was down at that retailer you mention just a few days ago, and a kid was trying out one of the new 42's. I really like that horn--super easy to play and has a nice sound. The owner likes to stock these horns because they are popular amongst the youngsters, and I can see why.

Bryant Jordan · Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 9:11 am Post subject:

I agree, LaTrompeta. My private instructor and teacher designed the 42 series, and they are great. I know quite a lot of people who play the 42, and they love it. I didn't like the feel when holding the horn the times that I tried it, but that's just me. Other than that, they play wonderfully. If you go on Cannonballs website, players who endorse Cannonballs trumpet models have written reviews and swear by them. And a cool thing is, the endorsers pay for their horns.

Bryant Jordan · Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 9:18 am Post subject:

Oh, Winston plays the Lynx model, NYC. Such a great horn for extreme upper register. Mr. Byrd sounds amazing on it!

LaTrompeta · Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 10:48 am Post subject:

Bryant Jordan · Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 11:31 am Post subject:

Yep. He won't let me call him Howard till I graduate.

Mr. Summers is a great guy, awesome player too! How'd you come to know him?

rpoutan · Posted: Mon Feb 12, 2018 11:57 am Post subject: Cannonball 790RL Trumpet

Has anyone played the Cannonball 790RL trumpet? Thoughts? I was wondering how it compares to the older 789RL model. The 789RL was built by B&S and tweaked by Cannonball, and the Cannonball website says that the 790RL is built in the US. Does anyone know who builds it? It might be Kanstul as they build the Cannonball 779 Flugel.